Sunday 18 May 2014

Beads Basics -- Jewelry Making Basics # 2

Beads Basics -- Jewelry Making Basics # 2




For me beads are miniature treasures! Specially when, there is an endless variety of bead material available today, for instance, glass, gemstones, shells, acrylic, polymer clay, plastic, etc. This list is endless. These come in different types of materials ranging from precious metals, organic stuff, synthetically (laboratory) produced materials to naturally occurring substances and rocks. My personal favorites are gemstones and shells. May be because they are natural, the various textures and hues found in them are unique (to some extent) and one of a kind. Organic materials used for making beads range from shells, bones, horn, amber, seeds, nuts, coral, pearls and lot more.

       

To see more of such beads and fibers, please visit the link below:


Some people like to use beads as such they are, while some will enhance these further by painting them  or texturing them. One other cool way to design unique jewelry is by mixing beads with fibers and different cords. Some people even use buttons with them and create some really unique stuff. One thing to always remember is that keep plenty of beads while working, so that you don't have to stop in midway just because you ran out of beads. So, its no harm if you end up buying a little bit extra. There will always be places where you will be able to use up the remaining or leftover beads. What I usually do is put my little leftovers in a separate box and once it is full, then I design and create something with these mixed beads. The results are not only unique but stunning too.


                     

To see more of such beads and fibers, please visit the link below:

In most of the conventional jewelry, a bead is a focal point of a jewelry piece, while the fibers/cords add a texture or contrast. The fiber can emphasize a specific color among the many in the bead, hence the selection is very important. You can use smaller beads within the knots, just for enhancing it a little bit more. It entirely depends on the texture, type and color of fiber chosen and then this fiber will either enhance/contrast the beads in various ways. Its all about experimenting with different types of beads with different fibers. In my next post, I will discuss the same in more detail, on how to match beads with fibers.

        

To see more of such beads and fibers, please visit the link below:

One important thing to match is the strength of fiber. Only good quality of fiber will not help, it should be strong enough to hold the weight of beads. Stringing your beads on the fiber helps to preserve and protect them from damage and breakage. They don't have to hit against each other or be cut by wires. When storing your beads, keep your focal beads on a padded tray so you can see at a glance what you have available. It also prevents damage caused dueto running of beads. A good way is to keep several small boxes or trays and then sort out your beads in them depending on size and color. Once done, then you can start designing the jewelry, by first selecting the focal beads and then the remaining ones.

                            
                   

To see more of such beads and fibers, please visit the link below:



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